Chatra: A 20-member forest department team, headed by range officer Surya Bhushan Kumar, has been deployed in Itkhori to capture a wild animal that has been terrorising villagers, leaving 13 people injured. The team is equipped with nets and cages for the operation. The forest department remains uncertain as it has been unable to identify the species due to lack of evidence.
A viral video showing a hyena in the forest led many to believe it was the same animal that attacked people in two villages since Monday. Speaking to TOI, Chatra DFO Mukesh Kumar dismissed the viral video, saying it was from Nagri in Ranchi where a hyena was spotted last year. He urged people not to believe rumours and assured them that his department was working diligently to capture the animal.
Kumar mentioned that villagers have conflicting accounts about the animal's identity with some claiming it to be a hyena while others suggesting that it is a wolf. He confirmed that their efforts to locate and identify the animal would continue. "The department has distributed solar lanterns to 30 villages and advised residents to carry them during their movement at night," he said.
Kumar further said the search operations are being conducted in bushes, riversides and fields where the animal might seek shelter.
The situation created panic in several villages with residents avoiding venturing out at night. Local youth groups have organised themselves into teams to guard their villages in shifts during night hours.
Two children, Navneet Kumar and his sister Monita Kumari from Ganeshpur village, who were injured after they were allegedly attacked by the animal, are receiving treatment at the Itkhori community health centre. The siblings, who lost their parents years ago, are being attended to by their grandmother.